The university board decided on June 12 to move NHS – Department of Management and Service Innovation – from the Faculty of Social Sciences to the UiS School of Business and Law.
The decision was in line with the rector's proposal and carried with 6 against 5 votes.
The change will be effective 1 January 2026 and the department will be integrated into the Department of Innovation, Management and Marketing.
An additional proposal from the student representatives was also adopted. It establishes that the board will receive a follow-up case on benefit realization in the autumn and that a plan will be developed to ensure the study and work environment is maintained.
Last autumn the rector asked the deans of the two faculties to prepare a brief evaluation of the advantages, disadvantages, and risks associated with such a move.
Since then, the matter has been discussed in various forums at different levels within the organization. The rector concluded that the relocation would be beneficial for both strategic and economic reasons. Read the board's case report (in Norwegian) here.
In connection with this case, questions were raised regarding the rector's impartiality. The board was therefore provided with two legal assessments of this issue. Both an internal legal expert from the HR department and the law firm Kluge concluded that the rector is unquestionably impartial.
The board decided to discuss the issue of impartiality in a closed meeting, before also concluding that the rector is impartial.